The Premier Regional League continued this weekend with the tournaments of the second stage in Belgrade and Zagreb.
After two phases, each team played five games. The Serbian teams Novi Beograd and Radnicki remained unbeaten. Each side has a perfect 5 – 0 record.
The derby games of the second stage were encounters between the Champions League clubs. Both games were thrilling and open until the end.
Radnicki edged out Jug (10:9) in the Champions League derby, played in the group in Belgrade. Jadran Split and Novi Beograd faced off in Zagreb. Novi Beograd defeated Jadran (13:11).
Almost each of the nine games played in Belgrade was exciting. There were a lot of twists and turns at the tournament in the Banjica pool.
The tournament in Zagreb offered less excitement, but the derby Novi Beograd – Jadran wasn’t the only interesting game in this group.
2022/23 Regional League, Tournaments 2
Group in Belgrade
DAY 1
Jug – Partizan 17:12 (4:2, 4:3, 6:4, 3:3)
Jug: Kakaris 5, Zuvela 4, Fatovic 3, Krzic 2, Grgurevic 2, Mozara 1.
Partizan: Gladovic 2,Smiljevic 2, Giga 2, Paparic 2, Milos 1, Trtovic 1, Bozovic 1, K.Bodiroga 1.
Jadran HN – Crvena zvezda 11:12 (3:6, 1:1, 4:4, 3:1)
Jadran HN: Da.Radovic 4,Vukicevic 3, Khalturin 1, M.Gardasevic 1, Caraj 1 V.Radovic 1,
Crvena Zvezda: Subotic 3, Vasic 3, Seman 2, Banievic 1, Basara 1, Vukicevic 1, Radovic 1.
Primorac – Radnicki 9:11 (0:2, 5:3, 2:1, 2:5)
Primorac: Draskovic 3, Stanojevic 2, Mrsic 1, Gopcevic 1, Vujosevic 1, Milic 1.
Radnicki: Lukic 5, Radulovic 3, Jankovic 1, Cuk 1 Vico 1.
Loren Fatovic in front of Partizan’s defense Photo by Slobodan Sandic/VK Partizan
The first day in the Belgrade tournament at the Banjica pool was exciting, but the favorites collected the points.
Jug built a 7:2 lead in the first ten minutes of the match against Partizan. Still, the hosts recovered from an opening shock. Partizan cut the deficit to two goals (6:8, 7:9, 8:10, 9:11), but Jug closed the third quarter with three straight goals, and secured a safe 14:9 advantage before the final eight minutes.
The opening minutes of the encounter between Crvena Zvezda and Jadran didn’t indicate that the game would have a thrilling finish. Crvena Zvezda rushed to a 5:1 lead. Still, Jadran found its rhythm and started coming back. The Montenegrins narrowed the gap to two several times in the middle two periods, but Red-Whites controlled the game. In the middle of final quarter, the Belgrade: based side led 12:9. Jadran cut the deficit to one goal (11:12) with 02:34 left on the clock. The Montenegrins had the last attack in the match and a chance to equalize, but failed to score.
Jadran – Crvena Zvezda Photo by Slobodan Sandic/VK Partizan
The third game was the highlight of the day. Radnicki, the 2021 Regional League champion, was the favorite, but Primorac started dictating the pace in the middle of the second quarter. In the 16th minute, the Kotor-based side took the lead for the first time (5:4). From that point, the teams traded the goals. Primorac took a one-goal lead several times, and Radnicki responded with an equalizer. In the 27th minute, Primorac earned a 9:8.
Nemanja Vico in a battle with Primorac’s defense Photo by S.Sandic
After that, the Kotor-based side missed a few nice chances to double their advantage, including one from a penalty shot in the 30th minute. The missed penalty was the turning point. Immediately after, Lukic leveled at 9:9. The same player gave Radnicki a 10:9 lead with 34 seconds remaining on the clock. Primorac set up a 7 on 6 in their last attack (goalkeeper Kralj moved to Radnicki’s half of the field). The Montenegrins didn’t score, and Lukic sent the ball to the empty net for the final score.
DAY 2
Crvena Zvezda – Primorac 9:6 (1:1, 2:3, 2:1, 4:1)
Crvena Zvezda: Basara 2, Vasic 2, Markovic 2, Tankosic 2, Vukicevic 1.
Primorac: Vujosevic, F.Gardasevic 1, Paunovic 1, Gopcevic 1, Mrsic 1, Draskovic 1.
Jadran HN – Partizan 14:14 (2:5, 4:3, 3:3, 5:3)
Jadran HN: Vujovic 3, D. Radovic 2, M.Gardasevic 2, Khalturin 2, Caraj 2, Stupar 1, V. Radovic 1,Zhiuzhin 1.
Partizan: Milos 4, Trtovic 3, Dimitrijevic2, Smiljevic 2, Bozović 1, Giga 1, Paparic 1.
Jug – Radnicki 9:10 (2:3, 1:4, 3:2, 3:1)
Jug: Fatovic 4, Zuvela 2, Biljaka 1, Lazic 1, Mozara 1.
Radnicki: Lukic 4, Radulovic 2, Cuk 2, Stanojević 1, Ukropina 1.
The second day offered more thrills than Day 1.
The game Crvena Zvezda – Primorac was a rollercoaster. The Montenegrins earned a 4:1 lead midway through the second period. Early in the third quarter, Crvena Zvezda leveled at 4:4. Still, Primorac gained a new lead (5:4). Before the final quarter, the teams were at the same starting line – 5:5. The Serbs went ahead in the 26th minute, but Primorac leveled immediately. Still, the Red-Whites netted the last three goals in the match for a 9:6 victory.
Vejko Tankosic (Crvena Zvezda) Photo by S.Sandic
The clash between Partizan and Jadran was similar to the duel Crvena Zvezda – Jadran. The Serbian team controlled the match for most of the time. Partizan had a three-goal lead on several occasions (5:2, 6:3, 9:6, 10:7, 11:8, 12:9). Jadran chased the hosts constantly and managed to take a point. Stupar leveled at 14:14 with 54 seconds to go. After that neither of the sides found the net, and the match ended in a draw.
The second day was closed by a big derby Radnicki – Jug. Radnicki started excellently. The Serbian Cup winner had a 5-goal advantage (7:2) already in the 13th minute. But, Jug started coming back, mostly because of a good percentage of extra player shots. Two and a half minutes before the last break, the Dubrovnik-based team, led by Loren Fatovic, reduced the gap to two (6:8). Still, Nikola Lukic scored his fourth goal in Radnicki’s last possession in the third for a 9:6 lead.
Jug – Radnicki Photo by Slobodan Sandic/VK Partizan
However, Jug continued dominating. In the 30th minute, Zuvela leveled at 9:9, and the thriller was reaching its culmination. The teams fought a hard battle in the final two minutes. Radnicki earned the three points thanks to Milos Cuk, who netted an action goal for 10:9 with 34 seconds left on the clock. Jug tried to equalize with a 7-on-6 action (goalkeeper Popadic joined his teammates in the attack), but Radnicki saved the win.
DAY 3
Primorac – Partizan 4:6 (1:1, 3:1, 0:0, 0:4)
Primorac: Draskovic 3, Gopcevic 1.
Partizan: Smiljevic 1, Dimitrijevic 1, Trtovic 1, N.Radulovic 1, Musikic 1, Milos 1.
Radnicki – Jadran HN 12:8 (4:1, 4:2, 4:2, 0:3)
Radnicki: Radulovic 4, Stanojevic 3, Ukropina 2, Pljevancic 2, Vico 1, Lukic 1..
Jadran Herceg Novi: Vujovic 2, D. Radovic 2, M. Gardasevic 2, Khalturin 1, Stupar 1.
Crvena Zvezda – Jug 10:13 (1:5, 4:4, 2:1, 3:3)
Crvena Zvezda: Basara 3, Seman 3, Vukicevic 2, Tankosic 1, Gajic 1.
Jug AO: Lazic 4, Fatovic 3, Zuvela 3, Biljaka 1, Kakaris 1, Mozara 1.
Partizan finished the tournament with a win over Primorac. That was the first victory for Partizan in this season. The Montenegrins played well until the fourth quarter, just as in the matches against Radnicki and Crvena Zvezda, but they ran out of gas for the last eight minutes. Primorac earned a 4:2 advantage in the first half. After a goalless third period, Partizan produced a comeback. In the 28th minute, the Serbs went ahead (5:4). Then, both teams missed a few nice chances. Dusan Trtovic decided everything scoring from a counterattack just two seconds before the end.
Zoran Bozovic (Partizan) Photo by: S.Sandic
After two hard-fought wins, Radnicki beat Jadran quite convincingly. The Kragujevac-based side quickly earned a 3-goal lead (3:0, 4:1) and stretched the margin to five before the middle break (8:3). The Serbian dictated the pace in the third period, too. In the 21st minute, Radnicki earned a huge 12:4 advantage. Jadran reduced the gap in the remaining time.
Jug, which played without Maro Jokovic, just as against Radnicki, opened the against Crvena Zvezda (which was without Gavril Subotic) match with a 5:1 lead. The Croats held back all Crvena Zvezda’s comeback attempts in the next three quarters. The Red Whites came close in the second period (3:5, 4:6, 5:7). Still, Jug regained a 4-goal lead before the middle break (9:5). In the second half, the distance was never smaller than three goals.
Group in Zagreb
DAY 1
Jadran S – Sabac 11:6 (4:2, 1:0, 4:1, 2:3)
Jadran S: Bukic 3, Tomasovic 2, Marinic Kragic 2, R.Buric 1, Cagalj 1, Z.Butic 1, Duzevic 1.
Sabac: Tubic 2, Repanovic 1, Barac 1, Stanic 1, Stojanovic 1.
Solaris – Novi Beograd 10:23 (2:6, 2:5, 4:5, 2:7)
Solaris: Penava 3, Condic Kadmenovic 2, Krekovic 2, Erak 2, Jakovcevic 1.
Novi Beograd; S.Rasovic 3, Mandic 3, Granados 3, Perkovic 3, Jaksic 2, Vucinic 2, Martinovic 2, Pijetlovic 1, Drasovic 1, Vlachopoulos 1, Skoumpakis 1, V.Rasovic 1
Mornar – Mladost 6:12 (2:5, 1:3, 1:1, 2:3)
Mornar BS: Buselic 3, Penava 1, Cumbelic 1, Mladinov 1.
Mladost: Guhaic 3, Jelaca 2, Adeishvili 2, Rakovac 2, Mijic 1, Herceg 1, Fabris 1.
There were no exciting games on Day 1 in Zagreb Jadran Split, Novi Beograd and host Mladost didn’t leave chance to their rivals. All field players of Novi Beograd found the net in a 23:10 victory over Solaris.
Jadran Split dictated the pace throughout the game against Sabac, while Mornar built a solid 5-goal advantage already in the first half of the match against Mornar.
DAY 2
Mornar – Sabac 4:13 (0:5, 2:0, 0:4, 2:4)
Mornar: Busellic 2,Cumbelic 1, Budisa 1.
Sabac: Stanic 3, Toholj 3, Sulc 2, Stojanovic 2, Krug 1, Barac 1, Shaikhutdinov 1.
Mladost – Solaris 13:7 (6:3, 2:1, 1:1, 4:2)
Mladost: Jelaca 4, Gluhaic 3, Herceg 3, Rakovac 1, Mijic 1, Fabris 1.
Solaris: Radan 1, Penava 1, Sirovec 1, Burburan 1, T.Sparada 1 , Jakovcevic 1, Erak 1.
Jadran Split – Novi Beograd 11:13 (5:6, 1:3, 1:0, 4:4)
Jadran Split: Marinic Kragic 2, Bukic 2, Setka 2, Duzevic 2, Dobud 1, Zovic 1.
Novi Beograd: Granados 3, Mandic 2, Pijetlovic 2, Vlachopoulos 2, Skoumpakis 2,Jaksic 1, S.Rasovic 1,.
On Day 2, Mladost and Sabac recorded convincing wins. Both teams opened their games very well and didn’t let Solaris and Mornar, respectively, come back.
The derby between two Champions League clubs – Jadran Split and Novi Beograd – didn’t disappoint. It was a huge battle. Novi Beograd took an early 2:0 lead in the first two minutes of the game. Vlachopoulos scored both goals. From that point on, the Serbian champion was always in front, but everything was open until the final quarter. Novi Beograd doubled its advantage in the 6th minute (6:2). Still, Jadran cut the deficit to one goal (5:6) before the first break
Jadran’s Jerko Marinic Kragic (L) and Dusko Pijetlovic Photo:VK Novi Beograd/archive
Novi Beograd entered the final quarter with a 9:7 lead. Three and a half minutes before the end, Strahinja Rasovic converted a man-up, and Novi Beograd re-built a four-goal advantage (12:8). It seemed that there would be no thrills in the finish and that Novi Beograd had secured the win. However, Jadran netted three unanswered goals in 93 seconds. Dobud made it 11:12 in the 31st minute, and everything was open again. But, shortly after, Skoumapkis scored for 13:11. In the last 60 seconds, Novi Beograd kept a 2-goal distance.
DAY 3
Novi Beograd – Mornar 17:3 (2:1, 7:1, 4:0, 4:1)
Novi Beograd: Vucinic 4, V.Rasovic 3, Granados 2, Cetkovic 2, Skoumpakis 1, Mandic 1, Drasovic 1, Martinovic 1.
Mornar: Buzdovancic 2, Penava 1.
Mladost – Jadran S 8:12 (2:4, 2:3, 3:2, 1:3)
HAVK Mladost: Jelaca 2, Mijic 2, Fabris 1, Dadvani 1, Vrbnjak 1, Gluhaic 1.
Jadran Split: Marinic- Kragic 4, Setka 3, Butic 2, Tomasovic 1, Delic 1, Zovic 1.
Solaris – Sabac 7:13 (1:4, 2:3, 1:4, 3:2)
Solaris: Penava 4, Jakovcevic 1, Condic Kadmenovic 1, Burburan 1.
Sabac: Tubic 3, Shaikhutdinov 3, Barac 2, Stanic 1, Sulc 1, Stojanovic 1, Krug 1, Markovic 1.
The highlight of the third day in Zagreb was the Croatian derby, the clash between the former European champions – Mladost and Jadran Split. The visitors were the favorites, but Mladost played very well. Jadran broke the hosts’ resistance only in the finish of the game. Jadran earned a 4:2 lead in the first eight minutes. Mladost halved the deficit in the second period (3:4, 4:5), but Jerko Marinic Kragic closed the first half with two goals to give Jadran a 3-goal lead for the first time (7:4). Still, Mladost didn’t surrender and narrowed the gap in the third quarter (6:7, 7:8). But, early in the fourth, Marinic Kragic scored from a counter-attack for 10:7 and Mladost couldn’t come back.
Novi Beograd showed no mercy to Mornar.
Sabac dominated the last match of the tournament. The former Serbian champion built a 6:1 lead by the middle of the second quarter. In the 20th minute, Sabac increased the margin to seven (10:3) and secured three points.
1.Novi Beograd 5 – 15
2. Radnicki 5 – 15
3. Jug AO 5 – 12
4. Jadran S 5 – 12
5. Crvena Zvezda 5 – 9
6. Mladost 5 – 9
7. Sabac 5 – 6
8. Partizan 5 – 4
9. Jadran HN 5 – 4
10.Mornar 5 – 3
11. Primorac 5 – 0
12. Solaris 5 – 0
The league continues with the third stage between January 19 and 21.
Group in Sabac: Novi Beograd, Sabac, Mladost, Radnicki, Crvena Zvezda, Partizan.
Group in Sibenik: Jug, Jadran HN, Primorac, Jadran S, Mornar, Solaris .
Three rounds will be played in each group. The teams will face the sides they didn’t play in the previous stages.
